ISF Arrest Islamic State Militant in North Lebanon

The Internal Security Forces announced in a statement on Tuesday the arrest of an Islamic State group militant in the northern town of Zgharta, who admitted to having infiltrated Lebanon early in April.

The ISF statement said: “As part of a preventive security strategy adopted by the ISF Intelligence Division in order to focus on the infiltration of cadres and militants from terrorist organizations from Syria to Lebanon, the division was able to identify and arrest an IS military and field officer, shortly after he entered Lebanon."

It added that the arrest was made “before the suspect was able to carry out any actual activity or any kind of communication with IS cadres,” identifying him by his initials as M.Kh, Syrian.

During interrogation, the suspect confessed that he belongs to the IS military cadres, and has illegally entered Lebanese territories, coming from Syria, early in April.

He said he took military training courses, and has participated in several battles as a military and field commander, mainly in attacks at the Syrian city of Palmyra.

He appeared in a video footage filmed by the IS after the city fell under the IS control, he said.

He said he came to Lebanon with the purpose of “staying out of sight” after the Islamic State's defeat, awaiting any future orders from his superiors.